The Ties That Bind
by Aurora Lenore
Summary: Book 4 in my Egg-cellent Adventure series. After Bianca is kidnapped, Balki and Larry go to extreme lengths to find her. As it turns out, Bianca also has help from some unexpected sources. But will it be enough to save everyone from a tragic fate?
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

"Feel the burn, feel the burn; my legs are on fire, but this is supposed to be good," Greg Kitchens panted as he ran on the treadmill inside his bedroom.

Suddenly, out of the corner of his right eye, he saw a red light flashing on a device lying on his bedside table. "Oh, thank God," he exhaled, jumping off the treadmill and reaching for the device. Pushing his wet brown hair out of his eyes, he watched the LED screen scroll the words for his next assignment. Being the apprentice of a computer/technology guru had its ups and downs, but at times like this, he felt more like a secret agent than a lackey. Everything was so hush-hush. So much so, in fact, that even Greg himself wasn't sure where his fearless leader resided. The only directions he was given was to do whatever the device stated and do it in a timely fashion. At least this one was fairly easy. All he had to do was pick up the telephone and make a call. Not an average call, however; a call using a strange gadget born in the nineteen-eighties but not perfected until nineteen ninety six. A gadget that could transmit messages to any phone in the past, present or future. Today it had to be a phone number listed for Chicago in the year nineteen eighty seven. "And to think I wanted to be a musician," Greg said aloud before he typed in the message on the computer to be sent via phone line.

* * *

Balki Bartokomous watched helplessly as his cousin Larry Appleton paced back and forth the living room of their apartment, muttering to himself. Less than half an hour ago, Balki had witnessed their friend Bianca Pierson being kidnapped by some strange man and a hologram while Larry had been conveniently absent. He was still sore at his cousin for going off on some wild adventure without mentioning to Balki where he was going. Both he and Bianca had been frantic not knowing where he was and having to deal with their own problems. Balki had been repeatedly seeing the hologram of a girl Bianca knew, hearing her scream as she was shot each time. He still couldn't quite shake her image out of his brain. Bianca, on the other hand, was not only trying to comfort _him_, but worrying about Larry and dealing with her own resurfaced childhood trauma. Now she was kidnapped and taken in her time machine to wherever, whenever.

Suddenly, the phone rang and both Larry and Balki snapped to attention.

"That could be the kidnapper; Balki, you answer it and ask them how much they want in ransom money," Larry ordered, eyes wild.

Balki rolled his eyes and answered the phone. "Hello?"

Balki held the phone away as loud static filled the line before the noise died down. "Bianca….held….London….two thousand thirteen….Long Horn….careful…" a voice stated, the line cutting in and out.

"I'm sorry. We have a bad connection, Bianca," Balki stated calmly.

Instantly, Larry grabbed the phone from Balki. "Bianca? Where are you? Are you hurt?" he asked in a hurried panic. "Hello? Hello!"

"Cousin, that wasn't Bianca," Balki told him matter-of-factly as Larry slammed down the phone. "They just said her name."

"What?" Larry cried. "What else did they say? How much do they want in ransom money?"

"Cousin, take a chill pillow. They said nothing of money, handsome or otherwise. They only said few words."

"Well, _tell_ me, Balki; what else did they say?"

Balki tapped his chin thoughtfully before shrugging. "I don't remember, Cousin."

Balki started to walk away, but Larry grabbed him by the lapel of his collar and pulled him forward until they were inches away. "Balki! You _have_ to _remember_! _Focus_ and _remember,_" he growled.

Balki teared up. " I _can't_ remember under this pressure, Cousin. Besides, you're choking me with your bandaged hand," he gagged.

Larry instantly let him go and shoved him on the sofa. "Okay, okay, then Balki. Just relax," he said soothingly, fluffing the headrest of the sofa and massaging his temples. "Just relax and think back to the message. They said Bianca's name and what else did they say?"

"Oh, wait; I'm getting something," Balki closed his eyes. "I'm remembering something…"

"Yes, yes?" Larry asked eagerly.

"I forgot to let the cat out," Balki replied.

Suddenly, Larry's body pounced on the couch and he grabbed Balki again, pinning him down. "We don't _have_ a cat, Balki. What…did…the…message…say?"

"Held! It said held!" Balki cried, his voice at an octave he didn't recognize. "Bianca held."

"Bianca held _where_?" Larry snarled, still not moving from his position.

"Bianca held…Bianca held…. _London_!"

Finally, Larry sat up and let Balki go. "Bianca's held in London?"

"In two thousand thirteen, Long Horn and careful," Balki rattled off with ease.

"Anything else?" Larry finally asked, hopping up from the sofa.

"I said 'I'm sorry. We have a bad connection, Bianca', and then you grabbed the phone and said-"

"Never mind!" Larry cried. "Come on! We need to use the other time machine to travel to London in two thousand thirteen and look for a place that says Long Horn!"

"And be careful," Balki reminded him before Larry punched in the information and hovered his finger over the red 'Power' button.

* * *

"Wakey, wakey, Sleeping Beauty!" he sang happily as he splashed a small cup of water over her porcelain face. "Come on and give me a smile."

She coughed and sputtered before she clutched her throat and gasped for air.

"There's my girl! Welcome to the land of the living again. Sorry I had to take you out like that earlier, but it hurt me worse than it hurt you. I think I sprained my wrist."

"Where am I? Where have you taken me? And where's Balki?" she asked, sitting up. "What have you _done_, Jacob Langley?"

Jacob grinned so wide, his teeth shown. "You remember my name. How sweet. Sweet; get it? Cause I work at a candy shop? I'm hilarious. Seriously, though; I was wondering if you would even remember who _you_ were. I tapped you pretty hard back there."

"I'm Bianca Pierson and if you did anything to hurt Valeena or Balki, I swear-" she barked, trying to stand.

"Whoa, now; no need to run before you can walk," Jacob said, extending his hand to help her, but was quickly shrugged off. He watched as she slowly stood, albeit she was bracing her back against the wall as soon as she was upright.

"Where are Valeena and Balki?" she asked, wincing in pain.

Jacob smiled down at her. "Valeena is fine and I'm assuming this 'Balki' you refer to was the other man in the room when I escorted you away? He's fine, too. I left him with that look of horror on his face like this," he told her, imitating Balki's expression. "Is he your boyfriend?"

"Shut up and just tell me what you want," she said coolly.

"What do I want? Other than to just be loved and accepted for who I am? I want you to know how much you _ruined_ my _life_!" Jacob screamed, his demeanor changing to one of a psychopath as he lunged for her, pinning her to the wall. "As much as this sounds like a movie quote, I coulda been somebody! It should have been _me_; not _you_!"

"What are you talking about, Jacob? I just met you a few months ago," Bianca replied shakily.

"The name's Jacob, sweetie, but I'm sure you remember me better as your dearly departed cousin J.J.," he grinned wickedly, watching her face turn ashen and her mouth form a small 'o'.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

Larry had just entered the information into the computer and was about to push the power button when he had an epiphany. "A-_ha_!" he cried, causing Balki to jump. "I know a quicker way to find exactly where Bianca is!"

"Get out of the _city_! How you know that?"

"Because, in my dream, Bianca placed tracking devices in our shoes. So when she was here for _real_, I decided to check, just in case. Sure enough, Bianca had really placed a tracking device in my loafer. So before I left, I placed the device in _her_ sneaker, instead. So all we have to do is use the computer to detect the device and voila! It will lead us straight to Bianca," Larry explained enthusiastically.

"Does that mean we have to run around and around and pass the stick to people until we drop?" Balki asked.

"No, Balki; not a track like you run on! A tracking device is used to track people! It's how you can locate someone. It's just this little round device no bigger than the head of a thumbtack."

"Oh. Well, Cousin, I don't think that's gonna work because I-" Balki began.

"Balki, how many times have you tracked a tracking device in your lifetime?" Larry asked haughtily.

"Well, Cousin, I-"

"How many?"

"Well, I-"

"How many? How many times? How many times have you tracked a tracking device in your lifetime?" Larry interrupted.

Balki looked at him for a moment before looking down. "None."

Larry raised his eyebrows. "None? As in zero? As in never ever have you tracked a tracking device in your _lifetime_?"

"That is correct," Balki replied.

"Well, Balki, I can tell you that with this time machine, I-Larry Appleton-can track Bianca's whereabouts using the tracking device I placed back in her shoe. So just watch…and learn."

After a couple of minutes, Larry was able to pull up the screen to track her tracking device. "You see, Balki?" Larry began. "In just a few seconds, it will tell me the exact location of Bianca's whereabouts, which are now showing that she should be…approximately on the bookcase."

Balki looked at Larry, mock surprise on his face. "I'm sorry, Cousin; were you talking to me? I was too busy watching and learning."

Larry exited the machine and picked up the tracking device, which sat beside Balki's stuffed sheep Dimitri on the bookcase. "She must've found it and placed it here."

"Well, I _tried_ to tell you that there was a small round object no bigger than the head of a hunchback, but you couldn't see past the end of your ears," Balki told him.

Larry made a growling noise and threw up his hands. "Okay, fine! We'll just have to go to London in the year two thousand thirteen and find something to do with Long Horn."

As he typed the information into the device, however, he felt a twinge of guilt for not being there when Bianca and Balki needed him. If he had been in the apartment, maybe he could have stopped the strange man from taking Bianca. But on the other hand, he knew that the information he had obtained was of great importance to her. He just hoped he would be able to find her to _tell_ her what he had learned.

* * *

"Greg, are you alone?"

"Well, hello to you, _too_," Greg retorted, looking to his left, right and behind him. "Yes, I'm alone. What are you asking of me this time?"

"I need you to go to an address. You've been there before and I sent it to your device. I need you to go there and look for any clues of a struggle, a break-in, or anything out of place."

"This has something to do with that 'project' you've been working on for awhile, doesn't it?"

"Yes, Greg. It does. It's very important. Now please hurry and if you find anything, just enter it into the device. I'll get back to you when I can…and Greg? Thank you."

"And yet this 'project' has nothing to do with mega pixels or gamma rays, does it, Fearless Leader?" he muttered to himself as he placed his phone back in his inside vest pocket and pulled out the device from his black pleated pants pocket. When he saw the address, he sighed. "Back to the house of multilingual appliances and robots who want to kill me."

A few minutes later, he pulled his blue Scion into the drive and unlocked the door using a key his Fearless Leader had given him. As soon as he was inside, he looked around. It was quiet. Too quiet. "Here, boy; here, boy," he called out, whistling.

A minute passed and no bells or sirens had gone off, so he proceeded.

"Intruder….intrud…int…", something said, it's voice sounding lower and slower each time.

"Well, that doesn't sound well for my attacker," Greg said as he walked into the living room and down the hallway. Halfway down, he smelled a strange odor and then saw some sort of liquid goop on the floor. "Battery fluid," he whispered, kneeling down, dipping his fingers in it and sniffing them. Opening the door closest to the mess, he gasped when he saw his former robot predator, in four or five mangled pieces on the floor. The robot's LED eyes and lips were shorting out and one mangled arm, hanging by only two wires was barely moving. Greg walked over to it and picked up a large piece of its torso. "This isn't good at all," he said, backing out of the room.

"Mmmm!" another strange voice could be heard in the next room down. Greg wasn't sure what was going on, but he ran into the living room, grabbed a table lamp and proceeded back to the room.

"I'm coming in and I've gotta warn you; I'm packing light…er, heat!" Greg shouted before he karate kicked the door down. "Hy-_ah_!"

Greg dropped the lamp, however, when he saw a woman sitting in a desk chair by the bed, tied up with a gag in her mouth. He knew she wasn't the person who lived here from photographs he had seen, but he wasn't about to refrain from helping a damsel in distress. He quickly took the gag out of her mouth and spoke before she could. "Please don't scream, lady, or I just might join in in two-part harmony. I'm just passing through as a favor for a friend."

"Are-are you Greg?" the raven-haired woman asked in an accent he had never quite heard before.

Greg raised an eyebrow at her, his usual lop-sided smile even more so. "Uh, yes."

"My name is Valeena Tolstoy. I'm a friend of Henry's. You have to untie me so we can get out of here before something _terrible_ happens!"

Greg did as he was told. "You were tied up and the robot took a beating. If I were you or it, I'd say something terrible already _has_ happened!"

"The woman who lives here has been kidnapped, as well! She could be in terrible danger!" Valeena told him as they ran into the other room and gathered R.O.B.'s remains before rushing out. "A man by the name of Jacob Langley took her and he's holding Henry, as well!"

Greg skidded to a halt. "Whoa. Hold the phones. My fearless leader's been kidnapped, too?"

"Yes! He's been held prisoner for a few months now. Thankfully, Henry is still able to use his phone to get in touch with _you_. Now can we please go?"

"Where exactly do you want to go? The police?" Greg asked as they left the house.

Valeena shook her head. "It's best the police don't get involved. I need to stay with you, at least until Henry calls back. He needs to know that I'm safe. He'll know what to do."

Greg shrugged as he placed the robot parts in the trunk and opened the door for her to get in the passenger side of his Scion. So all of Henry's secret calls were to help a woman being held against her _will_? His fearless leader had some serious 'splainin' to do when he called back, _that_ much was for sure.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

Jacob looked at her sleeping figure and sighed happily. For someone so smart and so blessed, she didn't look as much either one lying strapped down to a bed, heavily sedated. He really hadn't planned on sedating her, but he also hadn't figured she would get so wound up, either. Once the reality of who he really was had set in, she became increasingly and surprisingly violent. Thank God he had managed to call for back-up or she might have managed to overtake him and escape. It was a large castle, but all he had to do was push a button to alert his two bodyguards and they would come to his aid in a heartbeat. Now, he just needed to check on his 'other' prisoner in the dungeon. With an enthusiastic wave to his unconscious half cousin, he exited her room and quickly ran down into the bowels of the castle.

"Well, hello, old man. Bet you can't tell why I'm in an incredibly good mood, can you? Oh wait; I bet you can," he taunted through the small barred window of the door.

Henry didn't look up at him, only continued to hang his head as he sat in his chair. "Congratulations. You kidnapped Bianca. You'd just better keep your promise and not hurt her."

"Henry, Henry, Henry," Jacob replied, sounding disappointed. "Now you _know_ I told you I wouldn't harm her. However…"

"However _what_?" Henry asked, looking up at his captor.

"Well, she did become a bit rowdy, so my guards had to sedate her and keep her from causing harm to herself or others. You never warned me she was quite so temperamental."

Jacob's eyes twinkled as he watched Henry stand up so quickly that the chair toppled over. "Jacob Langley, I swear upon my last breath that you will _pay_ for this!"

Jacob laughed. "Gramps, you were supposed to have had your last breath back in nineteen ninety six. Too bad you were only faking it."

"You truly are your mother's son, J.J.; cold and heartless and jealous to no end. I guess you wanna end up like her, too?"

Suddenly, Jacob grabbed the bars and shook them, his eyes wild. "Don't you _dare_ talk about my mother like that! I lost her because of _you_ and that dreadful granddaughter of yours! Keep talking and I'll inflict so much pain on her, she'll _wish_ she were dead!" he screamed before spinning around and storming off. Too bad Gramps didn't know that Valeena was no longer in the castle, but tied up at Bianca's house. One last check of his sleepy cousin and he'd be off to torch the place she once called home. "Sorry, Valeena; your loss is my gain," he whispered to himself, feeling better already.

* * *

Balki exited the egg and looked around as they found themselves in the middle of a lovely park filled with people playing with their dogs, eating a picnic lunch and strolling along, hand-in-hand. "Wwoww," he breathed, taking it all in.

"Move along, keep moving, nothing to see here," Larry said to random people that walked by, staring at the egg-shaped machine that seemed to appear out of nowhere.

"Cousin, surely Bianca isn't here. This place doesn't look like the spleen of a crime," Balki told him.

"Balki, Bianca's not being held captive _here_," Larry replied before turning to a nearby couple walking by. "Excuse me; we're looking for a place with the name Long Horn. Do you know where we could find it?"

Balki waited patiently while the man quickly replied, giving Larry as much information as he could before walking away. As soon as he was out of earshot, Balki leaned over to Larry. "Cousin, what did he say?"

Larry looked at Balki, a confused and slightly annoyed look on his face. "I have no idea _what_ he said. I don't even know what _language_ he was speaking!"

Balki nodded and saw a young lady holding an umbrella. "Excuse me, miss? We are looking for a place that go by the name Long Horn. I think it's where General Custard and his army were depleted."

"Balki, you're thinking of Little Bighorn. We're looking for somewhere called Long Horn," Larry hissed.

"I think there are a few Long Horn restaurants around London. There's also a shoe store, a haberdashery, a car park, a castle and a Laundromat," she told them, counting each one off on her fingers before walking off.

Larry groaned. "This is going to take _forever_! Balki, what are we going to do?"

Balki scratched his chin for a moment, thinking. He wasn't sure what a haberdashery was or even how to _say_ it, but not one of those places sounded like somewhere for a man and his scary female hologram to hide.

Suddenly, he snapped his fingers. "Cousin, I've _got_ it!"

"You know where they _are_?" Larry asked, hopeful.

"No, but I know who can help! We need to get out of London Bridge and go back to Bianca's house. If anyone can help us, it's R.O.B.!"

"Balki, you're a _genius_!"

Balki looked away sheepishly. "Well, I don't know about _that_."

"Come on!" Larry cried, pulling him back into the machine and punching in the information.

A minute later, they appeared across the street from a giant fire truck parked in front of a house.

Balki cupped his hands around his eyes to shield the sun's reflection from the Plexiglass and looked out. "If you wanted to fight fires, you could have just told me, Cousin."

"Balki, I don't want to fight fires! I wanted to go to Bianca's house so we could see-oh my Lord! Balki; that _is_-I mean _was_ Bianca's house!"

Balki scrunched up his face and choked back a sob. "There was a gas leak, Cousin. She must have really bad karma chameleon! She-"

"The house is a total loss, but thankfully, no one was inside. Damn arsonists," one of the firemen said before getting back on the truck.

"Balki! Bianca wasn't inside, but someone intentionally burned her house to the ground. Either they were hoping she was there, or they burned the house down to get rid of evidence."

Balki hiccupped. "I'll miss that self-flushing toilet and its blue water. I'll miss her multilingual microwave. I'll miss R.O.B. and Wakamaru!"

Larry looked at Balki, his look of shock and horror mirroring one another. "R.O.B.!" they cried in unison.

* * *

Bianca tried to mentally push her way through the fog in her brain. She needed to open her eyes, if only for a minute. Surely, she was just having a nightmare and she would be back at either her house or Larry and Balki's apartment. "Larry," she whispered, her mouth dry and her tongue heavy. Where was Larry? Did he really come back to the apartment or had that been a dream, as well? He had told her so much information that it was hard to process. Her grandfather had been blackmailed? Something about a murder and cover-up? And what did he try and tell her just before Balki cried out? "Larry, I need to know…" she tried to speak. "Balki."

_Open your eyes, Bianca! _she scolded herself as she tried as hard as she could. When she finally did, everything was a big grey blur. Where was she? Was anyone there with her? Why did she feel as if she had morphed into a rock? "Balki, where are you?" she asked, gazing around the room to look for any other color that looked like a human.

Suddenly, she heard a loud banging noise and she managed to let out a small whimper that sounded like "help".

"We brought your food," a gruff-sounding man growled as he set down a blurred mess to her right. Bianca tried to speak again, but her voice was subdued by the loud banging noise. If only someone could help her figure out what had happened after Larry told her about her grandfather. She remembered Balki screaming and something about Valeena…Valeena!

"Valeena, are you okay? Who shot you?" she mumbled, trying to sit up from whatever she was lying on. "Are you with Balki?"

When she heard nothing but deafening silence, she let a cry escape her throat. Why was this happening to her? For the first time since she was eleven, she wished her grandfather was there with her. He'd know what was going on.

"B, I'm right here. You can't see me, but I'm closer than you think. Just hang on tight because ol' Henry's got a plan to save you," a voice spoke to her inside her brain.

"Grandfather? Is that you?" she asked, finally able to sit up for a second before the weight of the air pulled her back down. "Please save me."


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter Four**

Larry raced across the street, his heart beating so loud, he could hear it. "Excuse me, sir! My friend lives in that house. I need to know if-"

The fireman took off his hat and looked down at Larry. "The house is a total loss, but no one was inside. Your friend wasn't home at the time of the blaze."

"No, I know that, but can you tell me if you know who set the blaze? I overheard you talking to the chief about it."

"Sir, we don't handle that aspect. This is a matter for the police. Now if you'll excuse me-"

"Mr. Fireman," Balki cried, running to join them. "She had a robot inside named R.O.B. and another named Wakamaru. Did they survive?"

Larry looked a few feet out and saw a melted yellow blob. "Wakamaru didn't make it, Balki," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "That must mean that R.O.B. is gone, too."

"Oh say it isn't so, Cousin; R.O.B. was a good robot; even if he _did_ help you keep your secret," Balki sobbed.

Larry swallowed a lump of guilt that caught in his throat. It was true that R.O.B. had told Larry he would keep his whereabouts confidential. He wished he had it all to do over again. There would have been so many things he would have done differently. "Come on, Balki; let's go," he told his cousin sadly as they returned across the street and into the machine. "We need to go back to England."

"Back to the drawing bridge, hoh, Cousin?" Balki asked.

"Yes, Balki. Back to the drawing bridge," Larry repeated, not even caring that Balki got the saying wrong. Now not only did he have to find Bianca and make her forgive him, he now had to tell her that her house and robots were gone, as well. This was not looking good. Not at all.

* * *

Greg glanced at Valeena out of the corner of his eye. She looked nervous and scared, which he could relate to, but he also knew she knew way more than she was saying.

"Why can't you just tell me what's going on?" he finally sighed, turning on the air conditioner in his car.

Suddenly, his phone rang and he used his Bluetooth capability in his car to answer it on speaker by pressing a button on his steering wheel. "Hello?"

"Greg; what did you find?"

Greg sighed. "I found her robot bashed to bits, but I loaded the little rascal up and placed him in my trunk. I also found a friend of yours tied up in the next room, too."

"Valeena?" Henry's voice asked urgently. "Is she alright?"

"I'm fine, Henry, thanks to you and Greg. How's Bianca?"

"Not good, I'm afraid. That bastard had her sedated and won't let me see her. That's why I'm calling. I need your help again, Greg."

Greg cleared his throat and swallowed his nerves. "Not until you tell me what is going on. When I took this job, I was to be learning about technology and all that wicked cool stuff. But you have me using your inventions for odd jobs, leaving trails of bread crumbs and rescuing metallic creatures and damsels in distress. I need to know what in the hell is going on! Who is this woman you call Bianca and why are you being held prisoner?"

"It's time he knew, Henry," Valeena prompted.

"You're right, Greg. Besides, you'll need to know the whole story before you move ahead with possibly one of the biggest favors I've ever asked of you," Henry answered. Greg noticed how tired and sad his voice seemed. It wasn't anything like the man he had moved Heaven and Earth to work beside. "What I'm not able to finish, Valeena can fill you in. My chat time is limited here," Henry continued.

After ten minutes on the phone with Henry and the next twenty getting the conclusion from Valeena, Greg gulped. Everything made sense, but it was all so surreal! Greg knew nothing of this Bianca woman, but yet she was definitely in danger. Why was this happening now? Why not wait for her two knights in shining armor to come save her? And more importantly, why _him_?

* * *

"Why haven't you eaten anything? Don't you know that's rude?" Jacob asked her as he entered. She was still lying on the bed, the color gone from her face. The tray of food was still beside the bed, untouched. Surely she wasn't giving up so quickly.

"I'm not hungry, you jackass," she muttered, not moving. "Just exactly how long do you plan to keep me your prisoner here, anyway?"

Jacob scratched his chin thoughtfully. "You know, I haven't really thought of that. Perhaps until I figure out the perfect trade. Your freedom for something that will benefit me forever. As of now, though, I just want to separate you from everything you love. Like I was separated when those people showed up at my house and took me away from Ma."

"Your mother was crazy and had no business raising a child," Bianca replied bitterly. "I should know from all those times she locked me in the closet and sent me to my room without dinner."

Jacob bristled. "My mom did the _best_ she could and you were just an ungrateful brat who was in the way of our happiness!"

"Are you done?" Bianca asked, finally raising her head up to look at him. "I just want to be alone and wait for your plan to fail."

"Oh, trust me; my plan is fool-proof," Jacob laughed. "And once my assistant gets here, the fun will begin. Just you wait."

When he saw that she wasn't going to respond, he exited her room and closed the door. "Alek!" he called to one of his musclemen as he passed by.

"Yes?" he asked gruffly. Although he'd never let it show, Jacob was slightly afraid of the man who towered above him at almost seven feet and was twice his size.

"Any word from Marsden on when he'll be here? I need him to watch our newest prisoner like a hawk. I don't trust her."

"I just spoke with him a half hour ago. He's on his way and looks forward to meeting the princess," Alek replied with a sneer.

Jacob smiled. "Good. And Quinn is staying with Henry."

"Yes, sir. No one has even come close to this area since you brought the princess here."

Jacob rolled his eyes. "Her name is _Bianca_, Alek." Good help was so hard to find these days.

"Here," Alek said suddenly, handing him a handkerchief. "It's happening again."

Jacob grabbed it from his over-sized bodyguard and placed it over his face, half embarrassed. "Thanks," he mumbled, glad it didn't happen while he was visiting his holier-than-thou half cousin.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter Five**

"This is the last restaurant with the name Long Horn, Balki; we're running out of options!"

Balki followed his panicked cousin inside the restaurant where the cashier stood patiently. They had been to the Long Horn shoe store, the car park, and the Laundromat with no luck. Even when his cousin flashed the photo of Bianca that they had found amongst the charred remains of her home, no one had seen her. "Cousin, maybe we should have started with the Abracadabery first," he said.

"That's haberdashery, Balki and we'll go there next. Someone _has_ to know where Bianca is. We're running out of time. There's no telling _what_ that crazed lunatic has done with her!"

"Excuse us; hi," Balki introduced himself to the cashier, giving her a warm embrace. "I'm Balki Bartokomous and this is Cousin Larry Appleton. We need your help finding our friend who is CIA."

Larry cleared his throat. "What my friend means is our friend is MIA and we were hoping you've seen her. _Please_ tell us you've seen her," he whined, flashing the photo of Bianca.

"Hmm, can't say that I have," the cashier replied in a strange American-esque accent. "But since you boys are so nice to look for your friend, let me give you one of our gift cards, good at any Long Horn restaurant."

Balki took the envelope from the woman and smiled brightly. How nice of her! "Why thank you! I'm sure when we find Bianca, we will all have a nice dinner here."

"Balki!" Larry hissed before turning back to the cashier. "Lady, we don't want a gift certificate; we just want to find our friend before something _terrible_ happens to her! Now Balki, give the lady back the envelope."

"But., Cousin, I don't want to give it back."

"Balki, I _said_ give the lady back the envelope!"

Balki pulled away as Larry tried to grab it. "But Cousin, I don't want to give the lady her envelope back!"

" _Balki_!"

"I don't want to give the envelope back," Balki wailed, lowering his head.

"Alright, alright, _fine_!" Larry hissed, embarrassed as people were beginning to stare. "You can _keep_ the damn gift certificate!"

Balki raised his head and smiled. "Yay."

"You two are something else. If I were you, I'd open that envelope ASAP," the cashier replied with a giggle.

"Cousin, you didn't tell me we would be going to ride the Space Shuttlecock!" Balki gasped excitedly.

"ASAP, Balki; not NASA. Come on, let's go," Larry seethed, pulling Balki along by his wrist.

As soon as they were outside, Balki looked at the envelope. "Cousin, what does ASAP mean?"

"It means as soon as possible, Balki," Larry sighed.

Balki immediately ripped the envelope open, but there was no gift certificate inside; only a small sheet of paper. "Oh po po. The cashier lady didn't give us a gift card; she only gave us a piece of paper that says, 'Bianca is held at the Long Horn castle. Please hurry'," he read.

"Balki, I don't have time to know that we've been ripped off and -oh my Lord!" Larry suddenly cried out, grabbing the paper from Balki's hands. "Balki, she wasn't trying to give us a gift certificate! She gave this to us so we would know where _Bianca_ is!"

"Well of course she did, don't be ridiculous," Balki quipped. But how did the lady behind the register know he and Larry were coming? How did she know where Bianca was? And where had he heard that strange voice before?

* * *

"Were you able to take care of whatever it is you were supposed to be taking care _of_?" Greg hissed as Valeena returned.

"Yes. Now we're just waiting for the new guard?" she questioned, peeking around the corner.

"Yep. I cannot believe I am doing this. Oh-here he comes!"

"Psst!" Valeena hissed as the stranger walked towards them near the entryway to the castle.

"Hey! Who said that?" the stranger stopped, looking around.

Greg cleared his throat. "You Marsden? The name's Quinn. I was told to take you to the prisoner."

Marsden looked Greg up and down quizzically. "Funny; you don't _look_ like a bodyguard."

"Well, that's just rude," Greg replied huffily. "_Now_!"

With one quick move, Valeena hit Marsden over the head with a nearby statuette head, shattering it into a million pieces and knocking Marsden out cold.

"Good shot!" Greg congratulated. "Okay, I'll disrobe Marsy and once we switch clothes, you take him wherever your heart desires."

Minutes later, Greg came out wearing Marsden's forest green long-sleeved shirt and black slacks. Valeena laughed as Marsden's clothes were a little loose, but thankfully not appallingly so. Marsden was now wearing Greg's white long-sleeved shirt, black vest and black slacks. "He never looked better," Greg joked as they carefully carried his unconscious body to the nearby time machine and stuffed him inside.

"Take good care of Bianca," Valeena sniffed, hugging him before she entered the machine and whizzed off, leaving Greg alone in the castle, terrified yet determined not to let his boss down. He just couldn't wait until his two helpers arrived. Surely they were on their way by now.

"Hey!" a male voice called out from behind.

"Aah!" Greg cried out before spinning around to find a tall male with blond hair and glasses. "Yeah?"

"I was hoping you would be…scarier. But I guess you'll do. Come with me, Marsden and I'll show you the prisoner. Careful, though; she may look harmless, but she's tricky. You'll need to be less jumpy and more alert," Blondie said as he led the way through the castle. "What happened to the _statue_?"

Greg cleared his throat. "Uh, sorry. But don't worry. If anyone tries anything, I'll do exactly what I did to the severed statue head."

Blondie turned and smiled wickedly. "I think I am going to like you, Mars. I think I'm going to like you a lot."

Greg gulped and continued to follow his new ruthless leader._ Henry, what have you gotten me into? You sure are putting a lot of faith in me and those other two guys to save you and your granddaughter. I just hope we don't let you down._


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter Six**

Larry looked up at the giant structure in front of him and his jaw dropped. "Oh my Lord! Balki, this place is _huge_! How will we _ever_ find Bianca in this monstrosity of a castle?"

Balki gulped. "There are monsters in this castle? I hope they are cute and furry like Grover on _Sesame Seed_."

Larry looked at his cousin, eyebrow raised. "I don't mean there are literal monsters here-wait, I take that back-whoever is holding Bianca prisoner is _definitely_ a monster."

Balki walked over to the time machine, pressed a button and smiled as it compacted itself small enough for Balki to fit inside his pants pocket. Larry had to admit that out of all the features of Bianca's egg-shaped creation, that was his favorite. He only hoped that she was alright and would be able to enjoy her time machine yet again in the near future. As Larry looked up at the castle once more, his heart literally ached for her. He missed her so much that it scared him. He loved his girlfriend Jennifer passionately, but being with Bianca did something entirely different to him. While he appeared nervous and compelled to impress Jennifer at any cost, he was both comfortable and exhilarated around Bianca. With her, he felt stronger and braver than normal. He didn't feel quite as self-conscious or completely out of his league the way it seemed when he was with Jennifer. Never in a million years did Larry Appleton believe he could feel so differently yet so captivated by two women. The only problem was, the one woman who felt the same was in Canada for six months.

"Cousin? Are you coming?" Balki asked, derailing his train of thought.

"Y-yes, Balki. I, uh, can't believe the drawbridge is down. It's almost _too_ easy."

"Cousin, of _course_ the drawbridge is down; otherwise, how would we get across the water float?"

Larry looked at him as if he'd grown two heads. "Good point," he replied with mock seriousness.

_Don't worry, Bianca; we're on our way,_ he thought to himself as he and Balki entered the castle.

* * *

"Marsden, this is Henry Pierson. Henry, this is Marsden Campbell," Jacob introduced.

Henry scoffed. "This is the man you've hired to keep watch over my granddaughter? And here I thought you had common sense."

"He may look scrawny, but I've heard news of his ruthlessness. He's perfect to watch the family's precious jewel," Jacob argued with a wicked grin. He had to admit that Marsden _did_ seem to look rather puny and defenseless, but Jacob had heard from various people around the area that looks were deceiving. Rumors of how he stood guard outside the headquarters of a local crime ring and took down several men on his own had spread far and wide. Jacob couldn't believe that before that, Marsden was just a security guard outside New York's Dutch Apple Dinner Theatre during a play called_ A Year With Frog and Toad._

"Uh, speaking of 'jewel', where _is_ the lady I'm supposed to guard?" Marsden asked.

"She's below this level of the keep," Jacob smiled. "I knew I'd like you. Eager to get to the job at hand. Like I said, though; she's tricky. She's smart and if she gives you any problems, just give her this," he said, handing Marsden a syringe, making sure Henry saw it. "It should keep her calm."

"Won't be a problem," Marsden said, taking the syringe and glancing over at Henry, who sat on his bed, pale-faced.

Jacob turned around to direct his new hire to Bianca's cell when Alek entered, his face one of shock and dismay. "Sir, I need to speak to you privately."

"If you gentlemen will excuse me for a moment," Jacob exited graciously before closing the door to the room so he could freak out. "What was _that_ about? What's going on? Don't tell me Bianca's _escaped_!"

Alek nodded his head. "No, sir. Quinn and I spotted something on our surveillance footage that we think you should look at."

Jacob ran into the great hall, where multiple televisions, computers and surveillance equipment were set up. Panic had begun to rise in his throat. No one could know where they were. Surely it was only a stray animal or just a lost innocent tourist who wandered too close.

"We spotted two individuals who just appeared out of nowhere and walked inside like they owned the place. We searched the outer halls, but found no one," Alek reported.

"Well, are they on camera?" Jacob asked impatiently.

Quinn pointed to two men as he paused the tape. "Those are the men, sir."

Jacob pulled his glasses further down the bridge of his nose and stared hard at the screen. One man was short and had curly hair, while the other one was a bit taller with dark hair.

Suddenly, the taller male looked up and almost directly into the camera. Jacob let out an audible gasp as he recognized the man who was with Bianca right before he had taken her! How did he and his former MIA friend _find_ her? This was not good; not good at all. Standing up, he glared at the two men. "Well, don't just stand there! We need to _find_ them; and if I find them first, they'll _rue_ the day they ever showed their faces here!"

* * *

"Balki, it is quiet in this castle. It's _too_ quiet," Larry whispered as they made their way within the bailey of the castle.

Balki nodded. "I don't even hear the organ playing music like they do when the people on TV walk inside castles. I think it's called "Canada".

"No, Balki. It's called "Cantata and Fugue" and they just play that music to add suspense to the movies. It's usually before the vampires come out."

Balki looked at Larry in horror. "Vampires? Cousin, what if they turned Bianca into a blood-sucking Robin Leach?"

"Balki, there are no vampires in this castle. Now can we _please_ just look for Bianca and get the hell out of here?" Larry hissed.

Suddenly, Larry stopped in his tracks and Balki plowed into him. "Cousin, you not even slow down before you hit the brakes! Next time, warn Balki you going to do that!"

"Balki, do you not _hear_ that?" Larry cried happily.

"What am I supposed to be listening for?" Balki whispered, but was quickly shushed by Larry.

"Bianca? Bianca! We hear you and we're on our way!" Larry cried out, running down the hallway towards the keep.

"Cousin," Balki began, but was shushed again. "I don't hear her," he quickly continued.

"You don't hear her calling my name? Balki, she's here! Don't worry, B; we're going to get you out of here!"

Balki cupped his hand behind his ear and strained to listen. Sure enough, he heard a voice softly crying for both he and Larry. But it didn't quite sound like Bianca. "Cousin, I don't think we should-"

"Balki, we have to _hurry_!" Larry snapped as he ran down the hallway, looking in each small window on the doors in hopes to see her.

"But Cousin, I really think-"

"Balki!" Larry turned around and gave Balki such a dirty look, it made him shudder. "Help me find Bianca!"

Balki opened his mouth to warn him again, but decided against it when Larry looked as if his head might explode.

"Larry...Balki…help me…" the voice called out faintly.

"Balki! She's in here! Help me open the door!" Larry grunted, trying to push the heavy metal door ajar.

Balki couldn't see in the small window, but he assisted his cousin in pushing the door forward as hard as he could, until it opened enough for them to squeeze through.

Larry gasped as he saw Bianca strapped to a chair in the middle of a dirty, dusty dungeon cell, looking weak and forlorn. "Bianca!"

Balki gasped, too, but not for the same reason. He saw Bianca as well, but he wasn't sure if his eyes were playing tricks on him. She looked incredibly pale and fuzzy. "Cousin?" he asked tentatively.

Larry ignored him, rushing over to Bianca. "Oh, Bianca, what have they done-_AAHH_!"

Balki screamed as Larry reached over to touch Bianca, only to be shocked so badly that he fell to the floor, shaking. " _Cousin_!" he yelled, kneeling over Larry, who shook violently. When he looked up again, the person in the chair was laughing. It wasn't Bianca, but it was the same man who had kidnapped her.

"Welcome to my humble abode," the man with very blond hair and tortoise-shell glasses said proudly as he stood, glaring down at Balki and Larry. "Or as the two of you will know it…_hell_."

Balki watched as Larry weakly reached out to grab the man by the ankle in hopes to trip him, but the man had disappeared!

Seconds later, the door had slammed shut behind them and Balki spun around to see the man on the other side of the door, grinning wickedly. "I take it you've already forgotten about holograms? They're my specialty, thanks to Bianca."

As soon as the man left, his laugh echoing down the hallway, Balki helped Larry sit up. "Cousin, are you alright? He tried to electrolyte you!"

Larry looked up at Balki, his eyes sad and hurt. "It wasn't Bianca, Balki. Now we may _never_ find her."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter Seven**

"She's in here," Alek told Greg as he unlocked the large metallic door. "The boss says to guard her with your life."

"You got it," Greg replied, stepping into the dungeon room and wincing as the door slammed closed behind him. As he looked across the room to the bed, his heart broke. Lying on the bed asleep was the woman he had seen in photographs at her home, but she was far from the same vibrant image in the photos. Her hair was tousled and unkempt and her face was pale. It looked as if the once vivacious woman was now gone, replaced by a human who had lost all hope. "Oh, Bianca. What has that monster done to you?" he whispered, stepping closer to her, noticing the untouched plate of food and glass of water.

Suddenly, in one swift second, he found himself pinned to the wall. The woman was now wide awake, her hand grasped firmly around his neck, crushing his Adam's apple. "Where are Larry and Balki? Tell me _now_!" she seethed.

"If you'll please let me go, I'll tell you everything. I was sent here by a friend," he croaked.

"Who sent you?" she asked in disbelief, not moving.

"Henry…Henry Pierson…," Greg sputtered.

Bianca recoiled and Greg instantly doubled over, coughing and gagging. "You're lying! My grandfather is _dead_!" she snapped.

"No, he's not. He's being held captive here, too. He sent me here to keep you safe," Greg said after grabbing her glass of water and drinking it in one swallow. "As for Larry and Balki, they are coming to find you."

"So you're telling me my grandfather is alive and Jacob is keeping him prisoner here, as well?" Bianca squeaked.

"Yes. That is _exactly_ what I'm telling you."

Bianca stood up straighter and looked at Greg suspiciously. "Then take me to him."

"You want me to take you to Henry? I can't do that. Jacob thinks I'm some guard named Marsden. But I just saw Henry a few minutes ago. Other than being worried sick about you, he's okay. I just found out he was here not too long ago for myself. All I can tell you is that my name is really Greg, I was hired to be your grandfather's apprentice, but basically, he's been having me help you."

Bianca scoffed. "Help me? You think being locked in this dungeon is going to _help_ me? If you want to help me, get me and my grandfather out of here!"

Greg wanted to smile at her tenaciousness, but didn't dare. "I'm going to try. Trust me, Henry and I've been helping your friend Larry discover the truth for a while now. Your grandfather is quite the genius. He designed a substance to mix in to someone's drink so to make them succumb to whatever you wish for them to dream. I snuck into his apartment and put a little in his tea before bed and Henry tried to warn him of things that were to come to fruition. Exhibit A: your kidnapping."

"Grandfather never invented anything like that! I knew everything he invented."

"You did only up until his 'death'. Truth is, he was hiding out, inventing gadgets and stuff like _crazy_!"

Greg watched as his words started to sink into her brain. Surely she knew he was telling the truth _now_.

"Well, thank you for trying to help Larry, but who's going to help he and Balki find me?"

"Hopefully, they are on their way with a little help from a girl named Valeena."

"Valeena?" she gasped. "You mean she's not _dead_?"

Greg smiled, satisfied. "Nope. I saved her from her untimely demise and she is going to help your two friends from back when find you in the here and now. I just hope they get here quick. These grey walls are really starting to bum me out!"

* * *

Larry moaned as he stood up with Balki's help. His entire body ached from the electricity that had coursed through him. He was so sure that had been Bianca calling him! Now as he thought back, it hadn't sounded completely like her, but as if someone were only mocking her. 'Oh, Balki, what have I done?" he asked sadly. He was supposed to help rescue Bianca, not allow himself to be tricked and instead wind up imprisoning Balki and himself.

"Cousin, you were struck by a holodeck, but you're fine now," Balki told him.

"Holodeck? Close, but so far away," a voice behind them chuckled.

Larry turned around and looked at the face of the man who had tricked them as he stared through the barred window. "What have you done with Bianca?" he spat.

"I'm surprised you even care, considering you weren't even there when I came for her. Where were you, anyway?" the man taunted.

"Cousin Larry was on a very important missile," Balki replied, matter-of-factly.

Larry looked up at Balki as he struggled to stand erect. "Balki, it's okay. You don't have to tell him _anything_."

"But Cousin, he asked," Balki argued.

"Yes, Cousin," the man mocked. "I asked." The man then looked at Balki. "So tell me, foreigner; where _did_ Cousin Larry go?"

Larry looked at Balki to try and give him a signal to keep his mouth shut, but Balki kept his eyes straight on the kidnapper.

"If you must know, he went to find out the truth about what happened to Bianca after her grandfather died," Balki blurted out. "And boy did he learn some things."

"Balki!" Larry hissed before looking at the kidnapper, whose face was turning red.

"Oh, really? So I guess you found out about poor J.J., didn't you?"

Larry gulped. "No. Not really," he lied.

"Cousin! You told me when we were looking for Bianca at the shoe store that J.J. was taken away from his mama because she was cuckoo for Cocoa Puffs," Balki interjected.

"You said my mama was _crazy_?" the man exploded, rattling the bars. "How _dare_ you interfere in my personal life!"

Larry's jaw dropped. "Wait; _you're_ J.J.? Oh my Lord! You kidnapped your own _cousin_?"

" _Half_ cousin!" Jacob seethed. "Alek! Get in here and watch the foreigner; I'm going to have a few words _alone_ with our curly-haired friend," he said as a giant of a man came into view.

"Sure thing," Alek replied as he and Jacob stormed inside.

"Wwoww," Balki breathed as Alek towered over him. "Someone took their chewable Flintstones vitamins as a child."

Larry wasn't listening, however. He was too busy staring into Jacob's eyes as he grabbed Larry by the collar and pulled him so close that their noses were almost touching. "You screwed with the wrong Cousin, _Cousin_," he growled before grabbing his arm and pulling him roughly out of the room.

"Cousin!" Balki cried.

Larry turned around in a panic. This was just like his dream when he and Balki were separated. "Balki! Don't let him hurt Balki!" he pleaded with Jacob.

"Oh, I wouldn't be worried about Balki if I were you," Jacob replied, his voice ice cold before Larry caught a glimpse of the sharp metallic knife blade in Jacob's free hand.

_Balki, if you can hear me, _please _save Bianca and tell her that I'm sorry I failed her,_ he thought sadly, knowing that he might possibly never see his best friend, his girlfriend or the woman he cared deeply for again.

* * *

"Hi, Alek, I'm Balki Bartokomous," Balki introduced before awkwardly hugging the large man. "Please tell me that Jacob isn't going to hurt Cousin Larry."

"I can't do that. I don't know what happened, but it looks like your Cousin really pissed the boss off," Alek replied in his gruff voice.

"Have you seen Bianca? Is she okay?"

"Look, kid; I can't help you. All I can say is that the boss has a guard in her room with her and the boss doesn't plan to hurt her as far as I know. I think he just wants her kept away from everyone she loves. The boss is also keeping her grandfather here, too, but you gotta keep that under your hat."

Balki looked at him, confused. "But I'm not wearing a hat."

"It _means_ you can't say anything, okay?" Alek clarified.

"Oh, okay! But why would Jacob keep Bianca's grandfather here? He is supposed to be at the grape yard with his feet under!"

Alek scratched his head for a second before answering. "The boss found out Henry faked his death and kidnapped him about a few months ago."

"Get out of the _city_! Bianca will be so happy to know that her grandfather didn't die!" Balki cried happily.

"I don't think the boss plans on ever telling her he's here. The boss doesn't want her to have any hope. He blames her for everything that happened to him."

"But that don't make any sense," Balki argued. "Cousin Larry tell me that Bianca was not happy with her aunt and that J.J. was already out of the painting before she came to live there!"

Alek shrugged. "I just do what I'm told. But I tell you what. The boss has got too many people scattered about so I'm going to take you to the same room Henry is in. He's only got me, Quinn and the new guy Marsden to look out for everyone. It'd be easier if you and Henry were together."

Balki clasped his hands together excitedly. He couldn't wait to meet Bianca's grandfather and tell him all about how they met her and how Larry's dream was coming true. "Really?"

Alek scoffed. "You really _are_ kind of crazy. If I were you and stuck in this place, the last thing I'd be is excited."

Balki nodded. It must have been true because in the few minutes Balki had talked to Alek, he never smiled once. If only the castle was better decorated. Grey was such a drab color. No _wonder_ everyone was in a bad mood.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter Eight**

Jacob shoved Larry into a cell and slammed the door so hard behind them that it echoed through the hallway. So instead of just being on a business trip, Larry Appleton was digging into Bianca's past and probably knew that Henry was alive and well, along with no telling what else. Just thinking about the short curly-haired idiot siding with Bianca and her grandfather made Jacob's skin crawl. Larry would pay for what he had done. He would pay dearly.

"Look, I don't know why you're so upset. I really found nothing of any importance at all and I know if you just-" Larry rambled nervously.

"Shut up!" Jacob cut him off. "Just who do you think you _are_, huh? Bianca's private investigator? Just doing a little research to try and figure out her family secrets like what happened to the little boy nobody wanted? My mother did the best she could given that no one accepted her _or_ me! All I wanted was a chance to prove myself, but Bianca was the golden child. Mother and I were nothing to her ungrateful family! _Nothing_!"

Larry opened his mouth to reply, but Jacob cut him off. "Shut up! I don't want to hear your whining and sniveling excuses!"

"Please don't hurt Bianca and Balki. That's all I ask. If you're going to kill me, all I ask is that you make it quick," Larry replied.

Jacob pointed to a metal table with a giant laptop computer on it. Pushed under the table was a metallic chair. "Sit," Jacob demanded, pointing at the chair.

Larry did as he was told and Jacob powered up the laptop and grabbed a walkie talkie from his belt loop. "Play footage for Room Four," he said into the walkie-talkie mic.

A few seconds later, Jacob grinned as an image of the room came into focus. "You see this monitor?" he asked Larry, his face inches from Larry's cheek. "It's showing footage of Bianca's cell. Your punishment will be to watch this monitor and know you can't help her." Jacob used the mouse pad to scroll until it showed Bianca, chained and shackled to the wall by her hands and feet. Her face was red and tears streamed down her face as she wailed loudly.

Larry's eyes grew wide and he looked up at Jacob with horror. "You did this to Bianca? You're a _monster_! Let her go! She doesn't deserve this!"

Jacob laughed. "Oh, but she does, Cousin. This and so much more. You see that thing around her neck?"

Larry didn't audibly reply but nodded his head.

"It's a shock collar. All one of my guards have to do is press a button and-_ZAP_!-instant electricity."

"No," Larry cried before grabbing the monitor with both hands. "Bianca! Bianca, can you hear me? Please!"

Jacob laughed. "She can't hear you, you fool."

Larry felt anger bubble up inside him and he shot up from the chair so fast, he knocked it over. "I said let her _go_, Jacob! You have no right to do this and you won't get away with it!" he said, his voice cold enough to re-freeze the melting polar ice caps.

For a second, Jacob looked as if he were mulling it over, before he smiled wickedly, grabbed his walkie-talkie and said one word: "Electricity".

Suddenly, Larry heard an ungodly scream and looked at the monitor to see Bianca's face twisted in pain and agony and the volts surged through her. "Bianca! No, no! What have I done? I'm sorry!" he yelled, leaning over and grabbing the monitor.

When he looked up again, Jacob was gone. Sitting back down, Larry looked at the montior one last time before he crossed his arms on the table and laid his head down, his body wracked with sobs.

* * *

Bianca screamed as loud as she could, not knowing what good it would do, but feeling the need to. She needed to get out of here and fast. If Balki and Larry were as close as Greg had suggested, they should have been there by now. Which meant, Jacob possibly had them captured, as well.

"Must you scream your head off? I'm doing the best I can," Greg complained as he played with a small device while pacing back and forth.

"What _are_ you doing?" she asked, walking over to him and peeking at the small cell-phone like object.

"Trying to contact Henry but I don't think he's able to talk. I think that freak of a bodyguard Quinn is watching him like a hawk."

Bianca felt a lump in her throat just thinking about her grandfather and the dream of Larry rushing to her bed to tell her what happened. "Is it true?" she blurted out without thinking.

Greg looked at her, eyebrow raised. "Is _what_ true?"

"Is it true that my grandfather was blackmailed into sending me to live with my aunt?"

"It's as true as I'm standing here. Henry sent me to place a cassette tape he had made long ago inside a folder that your friend Larry had found. Then he had me get out his boom box so that when Larry came to the house, he would find it. Your grandfather may still be held prisoner here, but he has been busy."

"Did you also slip something into my drink too so I would dream about Larry returning to tell me all of this? Before I was kidnapped, Larry came to me and told me about the blackmail and that Aunt Liv killed Uncle Frank. He started to say something else, but Balki woke me up."

"Nope," Greg replied, placing the device back in his pocket. "I just slipped the dream drug into Larry's drink, not yours. If that was the case, I might have been able to stop Jacob from ever getting his hands on you."

Suddenly, Jacob appeared at their cell window and Bianca instantly bristled. "What do you want?" she growled.

"Just to check on you and see if Marsden was being on his worst behavior."

Greg opened his mouth to reply, but Bianca beat him to it. "You are a worthless piece of _slime_ for keeping me locked in here with…with _him_," she jerked her thumb at Greg. "What do you want from me? An apology? When _hell_ freezes over!"

Jacob laughed. "Didn't think I'd get that much. No, I came to tell you the great news! Two unexpected guests have arrived to save you. Unfortunately, now _they_ need saving. Especially that despicable curly-haired one."

Bianca's face went ashen and she grabbed the bars on the window. "Larry; what have you done to Larry?"

"I think the better question will be what am I going to _do_ with Larry?"

"Please Jacob; I'm begging you to please leave Larry and Balki alone. Do what you want to me, but please just leave them be," she cried, tears streaming down her face.

"Eh, I'll think about it," Jacob retorted before walking off, whistling.

Bianca turned to Greg helplessly. "What are we going to do _now_? He's got Larry and Balki and I just know he's gonna hurt Larry and-"

Bianca couldn't finish her sentence out loud, but in her heart, she knew the ending. _And I can't imagine my life without him._


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter Nine**

Balki walked inside the room and smiled when he saw Bianca's grandfather. The older gentleman reminded Balki of Bianca, both of them having dimpled cheeks and a twinkle in their eyes. Balki also noticed that Bianca's grandfather looked tired and worried, as well. "Grandfather Henry; it's so good to _meet_ you! I'm Balki Bartokomous," he introduced, hugging the man with pride. Surprisingly enough, Henry returned the hug.

"Balki, it's lovely to meet you," he replied warmly.

"What are you doing?" Quinn snapped, looking up at Alek from his position on the floor.

"Jacob's got too many people scattered about. Why don't you go take a break and I'll watch these two?" Alek suggested.

Quinn shrugged and left his solitaire game without a word.

"Alek brought me here to meet you, Grandfather Henry. Bianca will be so happy to know you are not _dead_!" Balki exclaimed happily.

Henry threw his head back and laughed and Balki once again noticed that Bianca had a similar jovial laugh. "God, I hope so. I cannot wait to see my beloved granddaughter again." Henry then turned to Alek. "Did you get what I asked?"

Alek nodded and Balki watched as he gave Henry a cellular phone. "What that?" he asked?

"You don't know what a cell phone looks like?" Alek asked, eyebrow raised.

"Well of _course_ I do; don't be ridiculous! But can you get a bat signal in here?"

Henry laughed again. "Balki, I think you mean a cell signal and yes. This phone can get a signal anywhere. I invented it. I'm going to use it to get in touch with Greg."

"Greg is the guy watching Bianca, but Jacob thinks his name is Marsden," Alek explained before Balki could ask.

"I'm getting a headache," Balki moaned, trying to keep everything straight. Not to mention he was worried about Larry. Jacob seemed extremely angry at him and that scared Balki.

"Greg, it's me. Is she okay?" Henry asked, sitting down in a nearby chair. "Good. I have Balki and Alek in the cell with me and they're fine, but we don't know where Larry is."

Balki rocked back and forth on his heels and placed his hands in his pockets.

Suddenly, his fingers touched something inside and he pulled it out and looked at it. "Oh, that's right! I forgot when Cousin Larry and I arrived, we Shrinky-Dinked the machine so it could fit in my pocket."

Henry stood up from where he was sitting. "I'm sorry, Balki; did you say that you had Bianca's time machine?"

Balki nodded and handed it to Henry. "Yes. Cousin wanted me to put it in my pocket for safekeeping in case we needed it."

"This is _fantastic_, Balki! We can all finally get out of here!" Henry cried, hugging Balki.

"Well, we gotta talk about that," Balki said. "The machine works but it almost out of gas. We forgot to stop and get some on the way."

"Well, maybe we have enough to just send for Bianca and Greg. If the five of us are together, we can put our heads together and rescue Larry."

"I don't know how touching our heads are going to help Larry, but I'm good if you are," Balki replied.

"Wow," Alek exhaled. "You really _are_ a weird kid. Can you use the machine to get Bianca and Greg and bring them back here?"

"Well of _course_ I can; don't be-"

"Okay, then go, son. Hurry. Just type in Bianca's name and two thousand thirteen and you will get there," Henry interrupted.

Balki nodded and pressed the button to bring the machine to normal-size. "Okay. Bye guys," he waved, excited that he would see Bianca again.

* * *

Greg sat down beside Bianca as he placed his phone back in his pocket. "Henry is relieved to know you're okay. He said Balki is with them but they can't find Larry."

"Why couldn't you let me talk to my grandfather, Greg?" Bianca whined. "I haven't spoken to him since I was a kid. There are so many things I want to say to him. So many questions I need answered."

Greg smiled thinly. "Because he doesn't have that kind of time right now. Quinn could come back any second. And I had no idea that Alek was on Team Good Guys. Trust me, though; when we get out of here, you can ask him anything you'd like."

Suddenly, a loud buzzing noize sounded from behind Greg and he shot up with a cry.

"Hi, honey; Balki's home!" a strange accented voice cried as he appeared inside a time machine. How many of those did Henry _have_?

"Balki!" Bianca cried, running into his arms and allowing him to pick her up and spin her around. "Thank God!"

Greg glanced out the small window on the door nervously. "Uh, guys? Hate to bust up the happy reunion, but can we use our indoor voices in case Jacob or Quinn returns?"

"Hi, Greg! I'm Balki Bartokomous," Balki said, hugging a very stunned Greg.

"So you saw my grandfather? How is he?" Bianca asked.

Balki turned to her and touched her shoulders. "Oh, Bianca, he is so nice and grandfatherly. He is worried about you and Cousin Larry, though.. He wants me to come and bring you and Greg to his room so we can touch each other's head and come up with a way to rescue Cousin Larry and get the heck out of a Dodge Ram."

Greg looked at Bianca with one eyebrow raised, but Bianca just smiled back happily.

"So no one knows where Larry is?" Bianca asked.

Balki shook his head sadly. "No and Jacob seemed pretty mad when he took him out of our room."

"Jacob took him away? Then that's it. I'm going to use the machine to go to Larry. Balki, you hide in the bathroom and Greg, you can stay here, but I'm going to get Larry and bring him back."

"Bianca," I don't think that's wise. If Jacob is still with him-" Greg began, but Bianca cut him off.

"I'll deal with Jacob. Trust me. I'm madder than a wet hen and if he laid a _finger_ on Larry, so help me…"

Greg opened his mouth again, but this time, Balki interjected.

"Greg, if she madder than a wet hen, you shouldn't argue. On Mypos, our prized hen Helga accidentally fell into our water bucket and she was so mad, steam came out of her wattles for days," he told them. "Not to mention she turned to most unflattering shade of red."

"Greg, you're not talking me out of this. I have to help Larry. After everything he did for me, I have to do this."

Greg looked from Balki to Bianca and back again before letting out a huge sigh. "Okay. But just please be careful."

"You, too. I'll be back."

Greg watched as she climbed into the machine before he remembered something. "Oh! Wait! I almost forgot to give you this. When I put Henry's cassette in the folder of your Aunt Liv's things, Henry told me to take something out and give to you if we should ever meet." He quickly reached inside the original Marsden's pants pocket and pulled out a note. "Henry said to read this when you have time."

Bianca took the note and hastily put it in her front pocket. "Okay. I'm going to get Larry."

Balki smiled and waved. "Tell him Alek is a nice man. I don't think he know that."

"Yeah. I didn't know that, either," Greg said as Bianca disappeared. He then turned to Balki. "Okay, get in the bathroom and don't say a word in case Tweedledee and Tweedledum come this way."

"I thought we only had to worry about Jacob and Quinn?" Balki asked.

Greg opened his mouth to answer, but decided against it, instead pointing towards the bathroom door.


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten**

Jacob knew it was coming. He could feel it. He reached out for the nearest object, but it wasn't there.

Then suddenly, a strong hand grabbed him before he hit the floor and he looked up, his blurry vision making it unable to see who caught him. "Oh," was all Jacob could say.

"It's okay, boss. I got you," Quinn's low voice replied as he helped Jacob to the bed. "Your nose is bleeding again."

Jacob moaned and fumbled around for a tissue on the nightstand. He had just wiped the blood from his nose when he could feel another unpleasant sensation in his throat. Grabbing as many tissues as he could, he coughed into them, each cough sounding worse than the first. "Quinn, I can't do this anymore," he gasped. "I'm too sick. I wanted revenge, but it looks as if I won't get to live long enough to unleash any more of my wrath."

"Don't talk like that, boss. You just rest and I'll check on the prisoners. If anything fishy goes on, I'll take care of it."

Quinn turned to leave, but Jacob grabbed his arm. "Quinn, whatever you do to them, don't physically hurt Bianca. As much as I detest her, she's still-cough-family. Same goes for the ungrateful old man. I don't care what you do to those other two."

"But boss, why did you kidnap them if you planned no harm to them?" Quinn asked.

"I just want them to be miserable. I have no hope, so neither should they. They separated me from my mother, so it's only fair that I separate them. The foreign guy and Curly know too much. If they tell Bianca about her grandfather being alive, she'll scratch the walls down to get to him. I just want them to be as miserable as-cough-I am right now. I mean it, though, Quinn, You, Alek and Marsy can't attack Henry or Bianca physically."

"You just rest, boss. I'll take care of everything," Quinn assured him before walking away. "Somebody has to take charge around here since you haven't or can't."

Jacob thought he heard Quinn mumble something else after he said he'd take care of everything, but as he opened his mouth to speak, he began another fit of coughing.

_Why is this happening to me?_ he thought miserably as he stared at the brown-stained tissues in his hands.

* * *

"Where is she?"

Greg looked up and saw Quinn's ugly scarred face peering through the window. "She's using the bathroom, man. You want me to go in there?" he jerked his thumb behind him.

"I wish you would. She could be trying to escape. Look. Jacob's too sick to function, so it's up to us."

Greg stood up. Jacob was sick? This was news to him, but did the real Marsden know? "Too sick; what's going on with him _now_?" he asked, hoping there was a 'before' to speak of.

Quinn literally growled. "The nosebleeds and dizzy spells are worse. He's coughing up blood like crazy. Now it's up to _us_ to take charge! I have a feeling that Alek may be going soft on us, so you need to take care of Bianca _now_!"

"Take care of her? I'm doing the best I can!" Greg scoffed, sticking his head around the corner where the restroom was and letting out a high-pitch scream. "Yeah, see? She's still in there!"

"You _know_ what I mean! If you don't take care of her, I _will_! Now I'm going to see that insufferable idiot with the curly hair. Jacob is too sick to deal with things, so _I'm_ in charge now!" Quinn shouted before storming off.

"Is he gone?" Balki whispered from where he was hiding.

Greg nodded. "Yes, but he's gone to Larry's cell and he is not in a good mood."

"Oh no! He going to hurt Cousin Larry, too!"

"I'm more worried about what he's going to do when he finds Bianca in Larry's cell! Balki, he wants me to kill her. And if I don't, he _will_!" Greg cried, panic setting in. He had to figure out a way to warn Bianca-and fast!

* * *

Larry slammed the laptop shut for the umpteenth time and pulled Bianca's photo out of his pants pocket. He looked at her beautiful porcelain face smiling back at him, that twinkle in her eye that he loved and missed so much. Would she ever look at him that way again? Would he ever hear her sweet voice say his name or hum some random tune? Would he ever feel her touch his shoulder gently or listen to her bubbly laugh again?

_Wow, Appleton; you got it_ bad, he thought to himself before placing the photo back in his pocket and opening the laptop once more. Sadly, nothing had changed. She was still in chains, her head hung down and her body limp. Wait…was she-? _No, no!_ his brain screamed as he raced to the door and pounded on it wildly. "Jacob! Jacob, what have you done? Somebody _help_!" he cried out, his voice high and panicked.

Suddenly, he heard a buzzing noise behind him and he dashed to the table, grabbing the chair as a makeshift weapon. For a second, he thought maybe it was Balki when he saw the egg appear, but the person who emerged wasn't Balki.

"Larry! Oh thank God it's you and you're okay!" Bianca's voice cried out before she ran towards him.

Larry held the chair out from his chest as if he were trying to tame a lion and backed away. "Stay away from me; I fell for it once, but I'm not going to fall for it again, Jacob!" he snarled.

'Bianca's' smile left her face and he swore he saw what looked like actual tears forming in her eyes. "Larry, it-it's me. What did Jacob do to you?"

Larry wanted to believe, but he still kept the chair between them. "Jacob, I swear, if you sent another hologram-"

'Bianca' began to literally cry now and Larry wasn't sure what to believe. "Jacob has been tricking you with holograms of me? Oh, Larry; I'm so sorry."

"Bianca?" Larry allowed himself to whisper, slowly putting the chair down and reaching out his hand.

Bianca didn't hesitate before she jumped into his arms, hugging him tightly. "Oh, Larry! It's me. I'm here and we're going to get out of this place."

Larry returned the embrace, touching the back of her head, gently stroking her hair. Oh, she felt so _good_ in his arms. After a minute of holding each other tight, Larry pulled apart, grabbing her hands and looking her up and down. She looked so beautiful. Nothing like the woman on the screen-

"Wait a minute; if you're here and you're fine, then why does the laptop show something completely different?" Larry asked before gently pulling her to the table and hitting the enter button on the laptop. Sure enough, the same picture was there of Bianca in chains, crying out for someone to save her.

"What the hell? That's not me! I mean, it's _me_, but it's a trick! Jacob is showing you doctored footage of me that isn't real," Bianca gasped. "Oh, Larry; he locked you in here and made you believe that I was being _tortured_?"

Larry nodded, tears threatening to spill down his cheeks.

Suddenly and without warning, Bianca grabbed the laptop, held it high above her head and threw it with a cry of frustration, smashing it against the wall into tiny pieces. "Damn you, Jacob Langley!" she screamed.

Larry touched her shoulder and then grabbed her arms as she turned to face him. "I-I never thought I would see you again. There's something I need to tell you, Bianca. Something important."

Bianca smiled. "Not now, Larry. I need to take you back to where Balki and Greg are so we can go to the cell with my grandfather and Alek. We don't have a lot of time and my machine is almost out of gas."

"But, Bianca, this is really important and I need to tell you-wait; did you say Greg? Who's Greg?"

Bianca smiled. "He's the guy who's been helping you and my grandfather this whole time. I can't wait for you to meet him and my grandfather. Pretty soon, we'll all be out of here and free, Larryyyyyyy….."

In a split second, the floor underneath Bianca opened and she fell, but not before Larry managed to grab her hand. Bianca! Hang on! I've got you!"

"Larry!" she screamed, dangling in the darkness below.

_Larry Appleton; if you've never accomplished anything in your life, you have to save Bianca and not let go_, he commanded himself, trying not to slip and fall with her. Carefully, he leaned down and ignored the pain in his bad back. "Bianca, give me your other hand and I'll pull you up," he grunted.

Slowly, Bianca cried out as she swung her other hand up and grabbed Larry's wrist. "Larry, _hurry_! I can't hang on!"

With fierce determination, Larry grunted and cursed as he pulled with all his might, slowly dragging her back up. As soon as she was three-fourths of the way back in the cell with Larry, he fell backwards, taking Bianca with him as they toppled to the floor like two dominoes.

Larry didn't breathe as Bianca lay partially on top of him, tears of relief and gratitude on her face. "Well, _that_ was close," he finally whispered. "I was afraid for a second I was going to-"

Larry didn't get to finish his sentence, however, for Bianca pressed his lips against his, causing all thoughts to leave his brain. So Larry did the only thing he could do. He returned the kiss eagerly.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter Eleven**

"Come on, Bianca; please hurry with Cousin Larry," Balki whispered as he stared at the space where the machine had been before Bianca left. He hated that he had let her go alone, but he also knew that something weird was going on between her and Larry. He could feel it, even back when they were fighting about Larry's dream. Maybe Bianca and Larry were keeping a secret from him. Maybe Bianca was going to move into the apartment with them or she was getting a job working for the _Chicago Chronicle_. All Balki knew was that after Larry had the dream about Bianca being kidnapped, his mind had been preoccupied. Then when Bianca came back, both she and Larry had a weird aura about them. Normally, no one would be able to tell, but as a Myposian, Balki had a heightened sensitivity to that kind of thing. He knew it was from spending all that time with the flock. They knew when something was going to happen long before it did, just by a feeling in the air. While Balki might not be able to detect an earthquake before it occured, he could sense the rising and lowering temperatures between his two friends. Now, however, he just hoped they were both alright.

"I'm sure they'll be back soon, Balki," Greg told him, although Balki knew he was just as worried.

Suddenly, the door to the cell swung open with a loud bang and before Balki could run and hide, a very angry Quinn stood in the doorway. "I was hoping there would at least be one more person on my side, Marsden. Looks like I was wrong. Bianca wasn't here, but the _foreigner_ was! Why did you lie to me?"

"Quinn, calm down, would ya?" Greg laughed. "You knew that Alek changed up the rooming conditions! He put Balki in here, as well. You just missed Bianca. The girl's got a bladder the size of a cufflink."

"Don't _lie_ to me, Marsden! I know she was in the cell with that curly-mopped freak! I don't know how you managed to do it, but don't worry; she won't be coming back any time soon."

Balki's body tensed up. "Wait; are you trying to tell us that she won't be coming back any time soon?"

Quinn bristled. "That's _exactly_ what I'm telling you, you imbecile! I took care of her and now, I'm going to take care of _you_!"

Balki opened his mouth to reply, but Quinn quickly pulled a revolver from his jacket pocket and pointed it at him.

Greg stood up. "Now, Quinn; do we really need to kill the Mypiot? I mean, did Jacob condone this?"

"Jacob's not in charge anymore; _I_ am!" Quinn yelled, cocking the gun.

"I don't want to die," Balki cried, closing his eyes and waiting. "I never even got to eat at White Castle like Cousin Larry promised."

Suddenly, Balki heard the sound of moaning and a loud thud, followed by Greg whooping. Balki opened his eyes to find not Quinn, but the second worst thing. "No," he cried, backing away and covering his ears. "Don't scream, please; I can't take it!"

Greg thought about checking on Balki, but he had never been happier to see anyone in his life. "Valeena! How did you-?"

"What, you thought I was just going to miss the party _entirely_?" she laughed, her strange accent never sounding more beautiful. "Good thing I came back when I did. Now, I gotta explain to Balki that I'm a real live person and no longer Jacob's hologram of death."

"Okay, while you do that, I need to use your time machine and check on Larry and Bianca. Quinn said he took care of them and Henry will never forgive me if anything happens to them."

"Bastard better _not_ have hurt Bianca or Larry. Don't worry 'bout me. I'm gonna go find Henry and get him out of here," Valeena relpied.

Greg jumped into the time machine and punched in the location of the tracking device he had placed on Larry while he was in the hospital getting his hand bandaged.

Seconds later, he appeared in the cell with Bianca and Larry, who looked as if they were about to take off in _her_ time machine. "Wait!" Greg cried out.

"Greg!" Bianca cried out, hugging him, while Greg noticed Larry didn't look nearly as thrilled to see him. "What happened? Where's Balki?"

"He's with Valeena, who saved us in the nick of time. Quinn is in control now and he said he just took care of you and Larry."

Bianca nodded. "The floor opened up right underneath me. If Larry hadn't been holding onto my arms, I could have-"

"But she didn't because _I_ saved her," Larry retorted, sticking out his chest. "And I don't believe we've met."

"Well, we kind of have, but it's not important right now. All you need to know is that we gotta get in that time machine and get to Henry and Alek. Valeena and Balki will meet us there," Greg gushed, literally pushing them towards the machine.

"Wait, Valeena's here and she's okay?" Bianca asked.

"Yes, now stop talking and get in, okay? You, too, Larry. Questions need to be saved for after the reunion process."

"I'm going to get to see my grandfather again," Bianca whispered to Larry as he held her close before Greg powered up the machine. She couldn't wait to see him again. She couldn't wait to tell him that she understood and forgave him for everything.

"Yes, you are," Larry repeated. "If he's anything like you, I can't wait to meet him."

Seconds later, they arrived and Bianca flew out of the door and straight into her grandfather's arms. "Oh, I've missed you so much!"

"I missed you, too," Henry replied, tears in his eyes. "And just when I thought you couldn't look any more beautiful, you stun me."

"Grandfather, I'd like you to meet Larry," she said, grabbing Larry's hand and pulling him closer. "He was the one-"

"Who discovered the truth," Henry interrupted. "My granddaughter and I are so grateful to you _and_ your Myposian cousin."

Larry once again puffed out his chest and smiled. "Well, I _am_ an investigative reporter. It's my job to uncover the truth. But, uh, thank you for the help along the way."

Bianca turned around and smiled as she saw another machine carrying two more people she cared about. "Valeena!" she cried, racing to hug both her and Balki.

"Cousin! You're not deader than a doorbell!" Balki cried seconds later, hugging Larry.

"Balki, it's good to be-" Larry began after their embrace, but he stopped short as Balki's body fell forward and on top of him. "Balki?"

Bianca turned just in time to see Balki's unconscious body and Quinn behind him, holding Valeena in a vice grip with one arm and carrying a gun in his other free hand. "Quinn!" she gasped as Alek grabbed Balki and Larry held Bianca protectively. "Let her go."

"So glad I didn't miss the reunion," Quinn hissed. "It's a shame you all have to die now."

"Balki's okay. Just unconscious," Alek mouthed to Bianca as she glanced at him from the corner of her eye.

"Quinn, no one has to die. Just let Valeena go and we'll talk this out," Henry suggested, his hands up in protest.

Quinn laughed coldly. "Talk this out? There's nothing to _talk out_, old man! Jacob won't do the job, so I will have to do it for him."

Bianca slowly stepped forward, but Quinn aimed the gun at her and Larry quickly pulled her back to him. "Quinn, please; just let Valeena go and give Alek or Marsden the gun," she said, her voice shaking.

"Why; so they can both shoot me dead? Both of you are nothing but a couple of traitors!" Quinn yelled, thrashing the gun about wildly.

"Quinn, just calm down before you do something you'll regret," Greg attempted. Bianca looked over at him and could see that he was terrified for Valeena. Did he have _feelings_ for her? How did he even _know_ her?

"The only thing I'll regret," Quinn replied through gritted teeth, placing the gun at the crying Valeena's neck, "is not doing this sooner."

Bianca allowed Larry to place her head on his shoulder so she couldn't see Valeena's lifeless body, but she still heard the gunshot echo through the bailey of the castle.

"Valeena!" Greg cried, rushing over to her.

"Jacob?" Henry gasped at the same time.

Bianca lifted her head and forced herself to look. Valeena was on the floor bleeding, but so was Quinn. Standing a yard behind was a very shaky and weak-looking Jacob! "I told him…not to…do that," he whispered, his voice raspy. "Is she…alive?"

"Barely," Alek replied before walking over to Jacob and allowing him to lean on his burly body.

Bianca looked at Quinn's lifeless form and then up at Larry, tears in her eyes. "Larry, are you okay?"

Larry looked down at her, his face ashen and his eyes glazed. "I'm fine," he replied before he promptly fainted in her arms.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter Twelve**

Larry gasped for air as he sat up and felt something wet and cold on the back of his head. Blood! He had been shot _too_! "Oh, my Lord; oh, my Lord!" he cried, grabbing the back of his head, but felt instead Bianca's delicate hand holding a damp cloth to his cranium.

"Hey, you have a goose egg on your head, but you'll be fine," she whispered, her voice full of fake happiness. "Balki has a matching bump on his head, but he's with my grandfather right now."

"But what about the others? Jacob, Quinn, Valeena, Alek and that other guy?"

Bianca frowned, tears in her eyes. "Quinn and Valeena were shot, remember? Quinn didn't shoot Valeena but Jacob's gun grazed her, too. Quinn and Valeena are both-"

"Dead?" Larry finished for her, closing his eyes and mentally replaying the sound and image of the gun going off and both Quinn and Valeena falling to the floor. Involuntarily, Larry clutched his stomach. Where was his antacid when he needed it most?

"Jacob is very sick and Alek is-helping him-for some reason. As for Greg, he's pretty distraught. Seems he developed some feelings for Valeena when he saved her life. Larry, Jacob burned down my house and R.O.B. and Wakamaru…" she said, her voice trailing off before she looked away.

Larry glanced around and saw that he was on a bed in one of the rooms, but he and Bianca were the only two in there. "Balki…" he moaned.

"He's in the next room. I'll get him," she said, giving him the cloth to hold and kissing his forehead before leaving the room.

Larry lay back down on the bed and closed his eyes. How he longed to be back home in his apartment, sitting on the couch with Balki. He'd even take listening to Balki's Myposian tales over the reality they were in right now. The only good thing that had come out of this nightmare was the kiss Bianca planted on him after he had pulled her from the hole in the floor. The best part of his dream had come true. An image of Jennifer popped into his mind, but he quickly shooed it and the guilt away as Balki gingerly walked into the room. Larry noticed he was limping a little.

"I twisted my ankle when I got conked on the head," Balki answered before he could ask. "Grandfather Henry say it gonna be okay, though. How are you feeling, Cousin?"

"I'm fine," Larry replied quickly, sitting up. "My head is _killing_ me, though."

Balki sat down next to Larry and placed his head in his hands. "Oh, Cousin, I heard the sad news about Quinn and Bianca's friend Valeena. The holograph came _true_! She was shot and she _died_!" Balki cried, biting his quivering lower lip.

Larry placed his arm around his cousin. "I know, Balki. I-I saw it. But Valeena was shot accidentally. Jacob shot Quinn and Valeena just…got in the way."

Balki looked up at Larry, eyes wide. "You _saw_ it? Oh, Cousin, you must've been so scared!"

"No, I was just worried about Bianca," he half-lied. "I was afraid Quinn was going to…never mind. How is her grandfather? I only got to meet him for a second."

"Grandfather Henry is okay. He is upset about Valeena. Greg say that Valeena was the lady at the steakhouse who gave us the gift certificate telling us where Bianca was! I knew I heard that voice somewhere before!"

Larry smiled somewhat as he remembered the odd lady at the cashier's desk. "Valeena seemed like a good friend to Bianca."

Balki nodded and then grabbed his head. "Yes. I second that emotion. Greg, too. He and Grandfather Henry helped you find out what happened to Bianca all those years ago."

Larry lay back down on the bed. "Balki? I'm really tired now. Could you just leave me here for a little while to rest?"

"Okay, Cousin," Balki slowly rose and looked down at him. "Hey, Cousin?"

"What is it, Balki?"

"When can we go home?"

"Why don't you ask Henry or Bianca? The sooner, the better is all I have to say."

"Okay, I will," Balki said.

Larry watched him go and then closed his eyes. _And once I get home, I may never leave the apartment again_, he thought to himself, feeling a wave of nausea and sadness wash over him.

* * *

Greg sat on the bed, his head leaned back against the wall, staring into space. How did he go from being a cowardly apprentice to a gofer to a knight in shining armor to a grieving lovesick fool?

"I know you don't believe me now, but it's going to be okay, son," Henry whispered, sitting down beside him and placing his hand on Greg's shoulder. "I miss her terribly, too."

"I saved her from the fire just so she could get shot and die anyway," Greg laughed bitterly.

"No sense in beating yourself up, Greg. There was nothing you could have done. I will always be grateful to you for watching after B and saving Valeena's life. You have always gone above and beyond for me and it's appreciated. But right now, you need to be strong for B and for Valeena's memory. My granddaughter has no home to go to and she lost her dear friend."

Greg turned to Henry. "She has somewhere to go; she can go live with _you_ now. You're alive and she would love to go crazy with you just like old times."

"I'd love that more than anything, but my life is no refuge for B. She's still so young and I'm no Spring chicken. I'd only be holding her back. I'm glad she's in my life once again, but she needs people closer to her own age group to socialize with. The last thing she needs is to be boarded up with me inventing twenty-four seven. Which makes me think: do you know if she read that letter I gave you to give to her?"

"I-I don't think so. She shoved in her pocket when she went to find Larry," Greg replied.

"Well, then, don't just sit here. Go; remind her of the letter. It will change everything. Not to mention, it will give B something to focus on," Henry urged.

Greg looked over at Bianca, who stood with Balki in silence. "Okay."

"Hey, Bianca," Greg started as he walked towards her and the Mypiot.

"Hi," Bianca replied, chewing on a piece of her copper hair. "What's up?"

"Did you, uh, ever read that piece of paper I handed you earlier? The one you put in your pocket to read later?"

Bianca pulled the note out of her pocket and flashed it. "This one? No. I'll read it later."

Greg cleared his throat and looked at Henry before looking back at her. "Why don't you read it now? It might take your mind off Larry."

Bianca looked up at him, surprised that he knew what she was thinking about before Greg took Balki to the side to give her some privacy as she read whatever was in the note. While he had no major clue what was in the letter, he knew it was from her Aunt Liv and it was addressed to her specifically. From what Henry had told him, Greg was surprised her aunt even remembered Bianca's _name_.

"Alek, why aren't you with the others helping them go home?" Jacob asked, hearing how hoarce his voice had become. In just a matter of hours, it was almost as if he didn't even recognize himself. He sounded nothing like the former man he remembered, passionate about technology and longing to know more about his mother. But when did that longing turn into such bitterness and hatred towards others? He was definitely jealous of Bianca's relationship with the grandfather he longed to be loved by, but he never meant for it to come to…this. Ever since he became sick, it was as if he had two separate personalities. The jealous yet protective one and then the bitter, hateful, malicious one.

"I'm here because I was with you before you became ill and I will be with you until the end. Once you are comfortable, I will help the others get home," Alek replied, wiping Jacob's damp forehead with a cloth.

"This damn disease is spreading, Alek; I can feel it. I'm losing blood and I can barely stand. I killed one, possibly two people today. I deserve to die."

"You killed Quinn because he was going to kill your half-cousin and your grandfather and you knew that. You sacrificed lives to save _theirs_."

Jacob coughed but pushed away the tissue Alek handed him. "And poor Valeena. I tortured that girl to scare that foreign kid so he would be distracted. I don't even remember why I hated her so. Oh, Alek, I wish I could take it all back."

Alek grimaced and placed another blanket on Jacob's bed. "Don't talk, Jacob. Just rest."

"I hope everyone is rejoicing in being free," Jacob continued. "No one probably even knows-or cares-that I'm dying."

Suddenly, Jacob spotted a blurry figure standing in the doorway.

"You're wrong, Jacob. _I_ care. We are family, after all and that's what families do; we care about one another," the blurry image said.

Jacob smiled and closed his eyes. Surely he was imagining things. The voice sounded just like a younger version of his mother. Only it _wasn't_ his mother; the voice belonged to none other than the woman he kidnapped: his half-cousin, Bianca Pierson.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter Thirteen**

"Grandfather Henry, where did Bianca go? Did she go see Cousin Larry again?" Balki asked as he sat on the floor beside Henry's chair. "And why are we waiting to go home?"

Henry laughed. "You ask a lot of questions, Balki. Never lose that quality. Bianca didn't go see Larry, but she had something she needed to take care of. And as soon as our supplies arrive, we will go home."

Balki scratched his head. Supplies? Balki's head was beginning to hurt and he didn't think it was just from the concussion. His cousin was hurt and witnessed a violent crime, Bianca and Henry had been kidnapped by someone in their own family, two people lost their lives and Greg was dealing with the loss of a woman he liked. And now Bianca was out and about in the castle and Jacob was still…_somewhere_. At least they were free to roam around now, thanks to Henry grabbing Quinn's keys after he was shot. He just hoped whatever supplies that were needed arrived soon. He was more than ready to get back to his apartment, his bed and Dimitri.

Suddenly, Larry wandered in, his mouth open. "Do you guys hear a helicopter? Does that mean we can go _home_ finally?"

"The helicopter is taking Jacob to the hospital," Alek said, causing everyone to jump. Balki saw that Bianca was behind him and he was glad she was safe. "Bianca called the hospital to have him flown over immediately."

"You did _what_?" Larry gaped. "Did you not forget what that monster did to _you_; to _us_?"

"Larry, it's more complicated than that. Yes, I know Jacob did awful things, but when it comes down to it, he's family. I couldn't just watch him die alone in this castle."

Balki gasped. "Jacob got shot _too_?"

"No, Balki, remember? Quinn said he was sick," Greg reminded him.

Balki opened his mouth to reply, but Larry beat him to it. "Bianca, I cannot believe you are _helping_ him; family or not! If you ask me, the man deserves whatever illness he's _got_!"

Bianca recoiled, but quickly regained her composure. "Larry, there is more to the story than you realize. Jacob's illness-well, it's more than just your run-of-the-mill illness-Jacob has a rare tumor on his brain and another in his lungs. The tumor in his brain affected his behavior. Normally, the doctors would be able to do surgery, but it's too late. Jacob isn't going to make it. But I've got to do what I can as I'm the only family he has left, other than Grandfather."

"Bianca, you are doing a selfless and noble thing," Balki told her, standing up and taking her hands in his. "Family is the most important thing, no matter what."

"I-I don't believe this!" Larry cried out. "It's great that you want to be the heroine and all, but Jacob is _still_ crazy and dangerous! He shot two people and let's not forget that he set your house on fire with Valeena trapped inside!"

Balki looked at Henry, but Henry shook his head. Were they the only people who understood the value of family? As Balki looked around at Larry, Greg and Alek, he knew his answer. While they had a bit of reason to be surprised, it was disappointing to see them so shocked, disturbed and appalled that Bianca was doing the right thing; no matter how hard it was.

* * *

"Cod liver oil…check; pumpkin seeds…check; corn starch…check," Bianca heard the unmistakable voice from down the hallway. "This sounds like a recipe for disaster or a very excellent piece of artwork, if I do say so myself."

"Serge!" Bianca squealed, racing to embrace the flamboyant art dealer.

"Oh my _God_! There you are; my pièce de résistance. How are you _doing_? I love your hair! Did you do it yourself?" Serge chattered excitedly.

"Who's _he_?" Greg asked, one eyebrow raised.

"I called him. I design a website for his art dealership in Beverly Hills," Bianca beamed.

"That is correct. She called and said 'Serge, I know it's late, but if I send my very special car over, can you pick up a few random items and come back here?' and I said 'Well of _course_ I can do it, you little minx, you' and then she said-"

"Thanks, Serge. I owe you," Bianca interrupted, grabbing the paper bag of items from his hands and handing the various items to everyone.

"If I may ask-which I'm going to, anyway-why do you _need_ this mish-mash of random-y goodness?" Serge asked, his hand gestures as outrageous as his accent.

"It fuels my very special car so we can get the hell out of here," Bianca replied as she poured the ingredients one by one in a small hole near the base of her machine.

"Well, what do you _know_?"

Bianca couldn't help but to giggle a little as she watched Alek's facial expressions from the corner of her eye. Everyone else other than he and Serge had seen her machine enough to know how it was fueled. Her grandfather had taught her well, given as how he had built the first prototype, although it was limited on its' travel ability.

"There!" she exhaled. "Now that this one is locked and loaded-"

"Could you please not say '_locked and loaded_'?" Larry barked.

"We can all go home," she finished.

Suddenly, cheers and applause erupted from the crowd and Bianca smiled and grabbed Larry's hand.

"Wait; we're all going to different places," Alek said. "There's only two machines and I'm a little nervous to get in one."

"You? Nervous?" Serge scoffed. "Hard to _believe_ a big wooly mammoth of a person such as yourself is afraid of a small-oh, never mind."

"Alek, it's okay. We can drop you off at the hospital, Serge can go back to the art studios, and Greg, my grandfather, Balki, Larry and I can go back to the apartment."

Balki gasped. "Really? You're coming back to the apartment with us?"

Bianca smiled and winked at Larry. "There's no place I'd rather be."

Larry blushed. "Me, either. So can we please just get the hell out of here?"

"I second that emotion!" Balki, Greg and Henry replied in unison.


	14. Chapter 14

**Chapter Fourteen**

As soon as they entered the apartment, Greg watched in amusement as each of them ran to their treasured articles. Balki ran to Dimitri the stuffed sheep and held him close to his chest, Larry went straight for his bottle of chalky antacid and Bianca grabbed a can of spray cheese and devoured it. "So when are you going to tell Bianca you can't stay?" he asked after a minute.

Henry looked at Greg and smiled softly. "As soon as possible. Truthfully, though, my granddaughter already knows we have to part ways. But this time, she knows that I'll be right there if she ever needs me. She no longer has to feel as if I abandoned her."

As if on cue, Bianca walked over to them, a mix of relief and sadness on her face. "S-so, I guess we're finally free, huh?" she asked timidly.

"Yes, we are," Henry exhaled. "Oh, B; I'm so _proud_ of you. You are more remarkable than I could have _ever_ imagined. And my expectations were pretty high."

Bianca hugged Henry and Greg saw a tear fall down her cheek. "Grandfather, I'm gonna miss you. I love you."

Henry pulled back. "Now what's this 'I'm gonna miss you' business? Just because I won't be right next-door doesn't mean I'll be any further than right inside your heart. We will always have our special connection. And now that you know the whole truth, it's even stronger than ever."

Greg swallowed the lump forming in his throat. He wished he had that special connection with _his_ family, but sadly, that never came to pass. But at least he had a new somewhat _extended_ family with Henry and possibly Bianca. In fact, his new "sister from another mister" as he called her would be closer than before now that-

"Bianca?" Balki asked, causing Greg's thought train to derail. "Now that your lovely home has burned to the ground, where will you go? You need somewhere to hang your rat."

"Balki, Balki, Balki," Larry replied quickly. "Bianca is going to stay right here with us. Isn't that right, Bianca?"

"Uh, Larry, thank you for the generous offer, but I can't stay here. You forget; I still live in two thousand thirteen. I'll still come and visit often, but Greg and I were talking earlier and he said I could stay with him for awhile," Bianca answered timidly.

Larry's jaw dropped. "You're going to live with-with _him_? But-but you barely _know_ him. Couldn't you stay with your grandfather or something?"

Greg smiled, knowing that Larry was trying to hide his jealousy. "Larry, no need to worry. I've been Henry-approved."

Henry nodded. "Greg is right. He will take care of my grandaughter as if she were his own sister. Besides, it's only until she finds a suitable place of her own."

Larry was still trying to argue, but he couldn't get anything more than the occasional "But…but…" out of his mouth.

"Cousin, I want Bianca to stay here, too, but she don't belong here. Her life is in the _future_, building flying cars and jet packs for us to use someday. And I like Greg. He is a very nice person who helped us get out of that castle, remember?" Balki reasoned.

"Yeah," Larry whined. "But I don't _want_ her to go!"

Bianca giggled. "Oh, Larry! I'm coming back for visits! Tons of them!"

Greg had to stifle a laugh of his own as Bianca leaned forward and kissed Larry's cheek. Larry turned at least twenty shades of red. Greg also noticed the proverbial light bulb turn on in Balki's head as to what was going on. Balki's eyes grew wide and he looked back and forth from Bianca to Larry. Too bad Henry didn't have a machine to change Greg to a fly on the wall for _that_ conversation later.

* * *

Twenty minutes later, Greg, Bianca and Henry had left and Larry sat on the sofa, head in his hands. He missed Bianca already, but his throbbing head made it impossible to concentrate on her beautiful face etched in his memory.

"Cousin, we gotta talk. I saw the way you turned redder than a sunburned crab when Bianca kissed your cheek. Cousin, I know Bianca is a nice girl, but you already _have_ a girlfriend, remember? Her name is Jennifer Lyons and she attends flights for a living?" Balki sat down beside him, setting two teacups on the coffee table.

Larry sat up straighter and glared at Balki. How dare his cousin make him feel even worse? "Yes, I remember I have a girlfriend named Jennifer Lyons, but she isn't here right now, is she? No! She's in _Canada_ and I've barely spoken to her more than three _times_!"

Balki leaned back in his seat. "Well, considering you were gone back in time to help Bianca out and then we were looking for Bianca after she had been kidnapped and held captain until we were held captain in the castle, I'd say we been pretty busy, too. Maybe we just weren't at home," he pointed out knowingly.

Larry shot up and walked over to the phone sitting on the bar. "Balki, do you see this phone? What's attached to it?"

"A cord?" Balki quipped.

Larry growled. "No, not the cord; the _answering machine_!" He grabbed the machine so that Balki could see it. "How many messages are showing? Two! And do you know who they're _not_ from? _Jennifer_! They are both from _your_ girlfriend, Mary Anne, who apparently is the only one who remembers she has a _boyfriend_!"

Suddenly, Balki's eyes lit up. "Mary Anne called? Oh, I cannot wait to tell her about the trip!"

"Balki, you know you can't tell her about us time traveling or that we were held captive by Bianca's crazy half-cousin!" Larry cried, exasperated.

"Cousin, I know, but I can tell Mary Anne that we went to England and met some nice people in a castle. When she and Jennifer come back from Canada, though, I think we should tell them about Bianca. I know they would like to meet her."

Larry opened his mouth to reply, but Balki had already ran excitedly into his bedroom to call Mary Anne. Instead, he groaned and reached across the bar for his antacid.

Suddenly, Larry knocked a folded up piece of paper off the bar and onto the floor. Bending down, he picked it up and unfolded it. "What do we have _here_?" he asked as he read.

_Dear B,_

_I know I am the last person you would expect-or want-to hear from, but I don't know who else to turn to. I guess I should start by telling you that I truly am sorry for how I treated you, your grandfather, your uncle and everyone else. I was hurt, angry and bitter in that I felt as if J.J. and I weren't getting a fair deal. Henry never did truly accept me or J.J. in the way that I wished him to and I took all that anger out on you. If I could take it all back and start over, I would. I think of how my actions caused me to lose J.J. in the first place every day, as well as knowing the truth about how I killed my husband. But I guess I finally got what was coming to me. I now have a terminal illness. There is a tumor in my lung that is spreading faster than doctors know how to treat it. I fear that I may have only a few weeks to live. I know I have no right to ask you for a favor, but I plead with you: if you ever find my J.J., please take care of him for me. I know how important family is to you, so I hope that you will at least take this plea to heart. I cannot pay you money, I cannot redo the damage I have done, but perhaps I can give you vital information. Your grandfather is not dead. He knew that I was planning to kill him and after your uncle told him and I murdered him, your grandfather faked his own death. I thought he was dead for a long time, but found out the truth only a few months ago. Henry actually came to see me and brought with him a nice man named Greg. I gave them this letter and they told me somehow, someway, they would get this to you. They didn't tell me how, but I know they kept their word._

_Again, I am so sorry for everything. I don't deserve your love, forgiveness or understanding, but please don"t turn your back on my son. He doesn't deserve any of this. His life has been filled with pain that I have caused. Pain that I will die with. I wish you the best with your grandfather._

_Sincerely, Aunt Liv_

As Larry folded the letter, he understood why Bianca suddenly decided to help Jacob. As terrible as her aunt Liv had been to her, Bianca knew she couldn't refuse her aunt's dying request. "Oh my Lord," he muttered, feeling more emotions stir in him than his heart could hold as tears spilled down his cheeks. "If I wasn't certain before, I am now. I love you, Bianca Pierson."


End file.
